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Addressing Impairmentin the Legal Profession
A Presentation byFlorida Lawyers Assistance, Inc.
Michael Cohen, Esq., CEAPExecutive Director
Recovery Month – Nova Southeastern UniversitySeptember 28, 2012
Florida Lawyers Assistance800-282-8981
u Developed in 1970’s as an informal volunteer peer assistancenetwork and remains at the core one lawyer helping anotherthrough substance abuse and psychological problems
u Formed as separate non-profit corporation in 1986 pursuant toSupreme Court mandate, with Bar rule (1986) and statute (2000)to insure confidentiality
u Receives funding from the Bar and works cooperatively with theBar and Bar Examiners, but is not a Bar agency
u Over 30 attorney support meetings and 300 volunteers around thestate; referral resources trained to work with attorneys
FLA Objectives:
n To uphold (restore?) the public’s trust andconfidence in the bench and bar byinitiating intervention for judges andlawyers in need of help
n To educate the profession about theindicators of impairment and the resourcesavailable to affected judges and lawyers
n To develop strategies to facilitate earlyidentification of impaired professionals andincrease utilization of resources
FLA Monitoring Programn FLA partners with the Florida Bar and Board of Bar
Examiners to work with and monitor attorneys andapplicants whose impairment may have resulted inmisconductn Monitoring may consist of weekly 12 Step and/or FLA attorney
support meetings, random urinalysis testing, and monthlymeetings with a recovering attorney/mentor (substance abuse),or weekly facilitated attorney therapy groups (mental health)
n Reports are made to the Bar or Bar Examiners, which may helpdetermine sanctions to be imposed or whether an applicantshould be admitted, admitted conditionally, or denied admission
Monitoring Successn FLA statistics compare favorably to other peer
assistance programs (doctors, nurses), indicating that85%-90% of FLA clients comply with the provisions oftheir contracts while being monitoredn Since its inception in 1986, FLA has opened almost 4000 files,
approximately 500 of which have been conditional admitteesn The monitoring and conditional admission programs have
permitted hundreds of lawyers to maintain or obtain theirlicenses
n Due to the recovery principles and coping skills they areexposed to in FLA, many of these attorneys incorporate a highlevel of professionalism into their daily practices
n Of those attorneys who fail to comply, FLA in most cases canidentify and intervene prior to any significant client harm arising
Many legal professionals are inneed of help from:
n Stressn Substance abuse/dependencen Depression and other mental health
disorders
MIAMI-HERALDFEB. 24, 2006
The Prevalence of Impairment
n 15-20% of legal professionals will deal withsubstance abuse, as opposed to 10% of thegeneral population (Washington)
n Up to 33% of legal professionals suffer frommental health issues, as opposed to 9% of thegeneral population (Washington)
n Of 28 occupations surveyed, lawyers are mostlikely to suffer depression (1990 Johns HopkinsMedical School study), and have highest rateof suicide (NIOSH).
ChemicalDependency
Definition of Addiction:Continuing the Same Behavior
After Suffering NegativeConsequences of that Behavior
Punishment and Threats Won’t StopDrug Use Because the Drug
Becomes Equivalent to Survival
n Nothing’s higher than survivaln No threat (jail, disgrace, kids, family, career, job)
matches loss of survival (death)n In order to worry about those other things, you
must secure survival firstn Survival imperative is on the level of the
unconscious
With the installation of coping mechanisms(12 Step program, therapy, spirituality,
etc.), the cortex comes back “on-line,” andthe power of choice returns…
The Medical Benefits ofAlcohol Use
The Denial Process
Insight
Ration-alization
Denial
“The taxi ride from the office to the Rajun Cajun gives me time to think aboutwhat Paul had said, without saying it. Though I’ve always liked my booze, I haveto admit I have been hitting it pretty hard lately. If I were talking about someoneelse, I could point to early signs of alcoholism, the increased amounts, drinkingmyself to sleep at night, the bottle in the car console, and scariest of all, theblackouts. Today is not the first time I’ve waked up in the morning with nomemory of the night before. Scary.
Actually, though, I’ve done pretty well, I think. This is the first time that I couldsay that drinking has affected my work. Besides, this is only temporary, just untilthis thing with Beth is worked out and this case is behind me. They say that timeheals all wounds, and I believe it. If the booze helps me in the healing process,some adverse effects will have to be tolerated, for a while anyway.
I’ve just got to make sure that it doesn’t get out of hand. I’ve got to cut back,sure, but not quit cold turkey. That would be stupid. Just maybe put a limit onhow much I can have. A little self-regulation. Let’s say no more than two drinksat a time. No, don’t be unrealistic. Let’s say four, or six if it’s on a weekend,maybe. Yeah, that ought to do it, I think. I can handle that, I think, as the cabpulls into the parking lot.”
Conflict of Interest, The Hon. Terry Lewis, Tallahassee
Stress
“Stressors are, in shorthand,whatever you’re trying toavoid. Everyone recognizesthe adrenaline rush (poundingheart, dry mouth, butterflies)that marks their onset. Humanbeings are equipped to dealwith it, if it doesn’t happentoo often. But when ithappens again and again, theeffects multiply and cascade,invisibly, compounding over alifetime.”Newsweek, June 14, 1999
Factors in Legal Stress
n Practice development/managementn Time constraints and deadlinesn Paperworkn Client expectations and demandsn Pressure for billable hoursn Adversarial systemn Disciplinary proceedings
Attorneys are Especially Vulnerablen Adversarial nature (modern equivalent of trial by
combat) fosters stress responsen Tremendous fear of being perceived as weak by
others and of being taken advantage of due to suchperception
n Increased competition creates stressn Expectations of clients are unrealisticn Decline of professionalism, collegiality: “dog eat dog”
mentalityn Frustration of long, drawn out struggle with no clear
victoryn Inability to separate professional from personal life
Stress Management Techniquesn Work
n Get organized – clean upn Prioritize your to-do list, then tackle first what you want to avoid the mostn Develop efficient office practices (LOMAS)
n Homen Make time to go to kids’ games, eventsn Set up “date night” with spouse/SOn Realize interpersonal relationships are the most important aspect
of your lifen Self
n Exercise/relaxation techniquesn Have periodic physicalsn Examine your use of substancesn Give yourself permission to seek professional helpn Take yourself less seriously
You are here
Why You Should Care:How Impairment Affects
the Legal Profession
Relationship Between LawyerImpairment and Errors in
Judgment
n 33% of discipline cases involve asubstance abuse or psychological issue(Illinois)
n 80% of Client Protection Fund casesinvolve chemical dependency or agambling component (Louisiana)
2001 Oregon Survey
n Malpractice AND discipline complaint ratesfor lawyers before recovery are nearly 4TIMES HIGHER than rates after recoveryprogram implemented.
n Malpractice AND discipline complaint ratesfor those lawyers after recovery areLOWER than that of the general lawyerpopulation.
Family Physical Community Office Professional
Withdrawal fromactivities
Multiplecomplaints
Decrease incommunity affairs
Disorganizedappointmentschedule
Inappropriatebehavior, moods
Frequentabsences
Increased use ofprescriptions
Change of“friends”
Hostile behavior Decreasing qualityof work
Frequentarguments andabuse
Increasedhospitalizations
DUI, substancerelated arrests
“Locked door”syndrome
Inappropriatepleadings,decisions
Codependentbehaviors byfamily
Increased visits todoctors
Loss of confidenceby others
Borrowingmoney fromstaff
Office gossipabout behaviors
Antisocialbehavior/arrestsof children
Deterioration ofpersonalhygiene/dress
Decreasingspiritualinvolvement
Frequent sickdays
Malpractice &disciplinary claims
Sexual problems Accidents,traumas, ER visits
Sexual promiscuity Clientcomplaints tostaff
Missed hearings,depos, etc.
Separation/divorce Serious emotionalcrisis
Isolation fromsupport system
Unexplainedabsences
Loss of clients,practice, respect
There are resources availablen ABA Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs (CoLAP):
www.americanbar.org/groups/lawyer_assistance.htmln Florida Lawyers Assistance (FLA): www.fla-lap.orgn Programs experienced in intervention and
treatment of legal professionalsn Betty Ford Foundation (Rancho Mirage, CA)n Rush Behavioral Health (Chicago)n Talbott Recovery Campus (Atlanta)n COPAC (Brandon, MS)n Sierra Tucson (Arizona)n Hanley Center (W. Palm Beach, FL)n HealthCare Connection (Tampa, FL)n Next Step/Pine Grove (Hattiesburg, MS)
FLA provides free and confidential servicesto all sectors of the legal profession [Rule 3-
7.1(j); Ch. 397.482-486, F.S. (2001)]
Suggested Readingswww.fla-lap.org/bibliography
I think one of the basic problems of our profession and all professions is a loss ofindividual spirituality. This may offend some people, but when I read about the
history of this country and the way our Constitution was formed … I think about thereasons why lawyers do what they do. And for a lot of them, it is because they have
no compass that is directing them. They have no internal direction. And that’sbecoming more and more pervasive…. And this is something we never talk about.
We would like to relegate this to the parlors of homes and so forth. But it is aproblem that we’ve got to address and think about. We have lost touch. And I
don’t care what kind of spiritual values you have – whatever you are is unimportant– but the fact that we are living in an increasingly technological and material world
which has no time or room for these thoughts is, I think, one of the deepestproblems that we as lawyers face.
Hon. William Hoeveler,U.S. District Court, So. District of Florida
